Sports Leagues Monday

From staff and wire reports

WOMEN'S PREMIER SOCCER LEAGUE (wpsl.info) - Six teams from the East, South & Southwest Conference battled it out this weekend for two of the automatic berths into the 2007 Women's Premier Soccer League (WPSL) Final Four while River Cities F.C. of the Midwest Conference waited with baited breath as rival F.C. Indiana finished their regular season slate. When the dust settled, the South Conference champions Tampa Bay Elite qualified for the tournament they will host July 28-29 at Pepin-Rood Stadium (Univ. of Tampa) in Tampa with a 2-1 road win over Southwest champ Denver Diamonds while the No. 17-internationally ranked & undefeated New England Mutiny (North Division) won its fourth East Conference Championship in five seasons with a 2-1 double-overtime win over the Mid-Atlantic Division champion Atlantic City Diablos.

In the Midwest, the No. 7-internationally ranked F.C. Indiana will host River Cities in the Midwest playoff match on Wednesday. The Midwest champion receives an automatic berth into the WPSL Final Four, and this match will be a preview of bigger things to come in women's soccer as both organizations will be a part of the new professional women's soccer league starting in 2008.

MAJOR LEAGUE SOCCER (mlsnet.com) - Real Salt Lake's Freddy Adu could be headed overseas. The Salt Lake City Tribune, citing sources, reported early Sunday that Adu could be headed to Benfica of Portugal. Adu did not attend Real Salt Lake's 2-0 victory over English power Everton on Saturday night, but is expected to be back for Tuesday's exhibition against Argentine club Boca Juniors. Now in his fourth season in MLS, Adu has 12 goals and 19 assists.

MAJOR LEAGUE LACROSSE (majorleaguelacrosse.com) - The Los Angeles Riptide defeated the Washington Bayhawks, 19-5, before a crowd of 1,999 at Georgetown University on Saturday afternoon. With the win, the Riptide improved their record to 7-2 overall as they held their opponent to just five goals for the second consecutive game, and with three games remaining on the 2007 season schedule, the team strengthened their hold on first place in the Western Conference.

WOMEN'S NATIONAL BASKETBALL ASSOCIATION (wnba.com) - Connecticut Sun coach Mike Thibault won his 100th career game on Sunday, becoming the seventh WNBA coach to reach that milestone. Thibault improved his career record to 100-59, giving him a winning percentage of .629, which ranks fifth-best all-time and second among active coaches in the league. Michael Cooper (124 games) and Van Chancellor (125 games) are the only coaches to reach 100 wins faster than Thibault. The Sun won their sixth consecutive game Sunday, beating the Houston Comets, 81-79.